


We're Still Here

by WandaRavenBlack



Series: Road to Crisis on Infinite Earths [9]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU (Comics), Nightwing (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Coma, Dark, Dark Dick Grayson, Explosions, Madness, Past Character Death, Revenge, Starvation, Torture
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-21
Updated: 2020-11-02
Packaged: 2021-03-02 21:27:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24303652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WandaRavenBlack/pseuds/WandaRavenBlack
Summary: EARTH 32'Can't Find My Way Home' should be read before this to understand what is happening.Dick, Tim and Barbara manage to get Renegade's device to work. Bruce decides that he will test it out with Dick and Jason. They intend to travel to Renegade's earth, but end up in a completely different place. A place where Dick Grayson has lost almost all his faith in humanity and the Justice League.
Relationships: Cassandra Cain & Dick Grayson, Dick Grayson & Damian Wayne, Dick Grayson & Hal Jordan, Dick Grayson & Jason Todd & Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson & Slade Wilson
Series: Road to Crisis on Infinite Earths [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1751014
Comments: 18
Kudos: 83





	1. The Portal

Dick ran into the Batcave, Tim hurrying after him while pushing Babs’ chair in front of him. His speed made Dick almost trip over Titus. In the last second he jumped, head first, over the dog, made a roll and ended up in a crouch. Jason, who was training with Cass and Steph, raised his eyebrows. 

“However stylish that was, what happened to make you run like you had Joker on your heels?” 

Dick stood up, while Tim wheeled Babs over to the Batcomputer. 

“We did it! We figured it out!” 

Kate frowned. 

“You figured what out?” 

Dick pulled out the device that they had gotten from Renegade. 

“We figured out travel between earths. It took us longer than we expected, but we did it.” 

Damian perked up at that, looking up from where he was brushing Alfred the cat. 

“Does that mean we can visit Cass?” 

The girl frowned at him, but then shrugged. Thanks to the device Renegade had left them, Damian and Cass from the other world had gotten extremely close. They had video calls at least five times a week. During those, Damian would relay everything that had happened that day in school, tell her about the patrols and training. With her broken sentences, she would tell him about all the animals Renegade had let her keep. Steph would sit in on their talks sometimes, but almost never spoke. Once or twice a week, Renegade and Bruce would talk alone. They had found respect for each other, and the bats knew that Bruce valued their talks. On the other hand, Renegade was clearly changing. He still kept killing, that part would most probably never change. But he had allowed Cass and Steph to join New Titans. He would let the girls stay in the Wayne Manor with Jon. He still didn’t show too many emotions, sometimes slipping back to the thinking that Slade had beaten into him. But he always made sure to keep that part of himself as far away from the girls as possible, letting it out mostly when he was talking with Bruce. And, in return for him showing his true self, Bruce never judged him for the killing. Never told him to stop. Sometimes, they would talk with the doors closed, making sure no one overheard them. During those talks, Bruce would open up. Tell Renegade about what he really wanted to do to Joker every time he saw him. How he wanted to make some of the criminals pay for what they had done to his family. Renegade would listen without any comments. Letting Bruce talk. Say things he felt he couldn’t tell anyone on his own earth. The bats, as well as Cass and Steph from the other earth, knew about the talks, but never tried to interrupt them. They all knew that the two men needed this. 

“And is it stable?” 

Babs nodded. 

“Yeah. From all the computer simulations we’ve done, it should work out well. We double and triple checked.” 

Dick put the device on the table. 

“And, in case something does go wrong, I contacted M and Rae. Both can get here within seconds if we need them to open the portal back up.” 

Damian stood up, grabbing his sword. 

“What are we waiting for?” 

Bruce shook his head, standing up as well. 

“You’re not going.” 

The boy opened his mouth to protest, but stopped when he saw the look on Dick’s face. Bruce simply continued. 

“We can’t risk too many of us going and then getting stuck. Especially since this is a test run. Dick, Jason. You two are going with me. The rest of you stay in Gotham. If some big threat comes along, and you can’t take care of it, you call in Clark.” 

Kate frowned. 

“But what about your no metas or aliens in Gotham rule?” 

“Clark is an exception in times of need.” 

Dick suddenly pulled his own phone out and stretched it over to Damian. 

“If Clark can’t come, use my phone to call in help. Speed dial 2 is Midnighter. Him and Apollo can get here in seconds. 3 is Wally, 4 is Roy. 5 is Jason, so no idea trying that one.” 

The boy frowned while grabbing the phone. 

“Who is 1?” 

Dick froze, before shaking his head. 

“That’s not important. No one will answer that phone anymore, so don’t bother trying.” 

Jason, who had noticed the slight change in his expression, seemed to think very hard about something. When Dick was done talking, he tilted his head. 

“Dick? Was Slade number 1?” 

The young man gave him a glare. 

“It doesn’t matter anymore, does it? He’s dead.” 

A few people gave him odd looks. Jason, who was least surprised by the admission, continued talking. 

“You don’t seem too happy about that.” 

“About what?” 

“About Slade being dead.” 

Dick glared at him. 

“And how would you feel if Black Mask was suddenly killed?” 

Jason gave him an unamused stare. 

“Elated. Happy that I could take over his territory.” 

Dick shook his head. 

“Why do I even bother with you? Steph. How would you feel if you found out your father was killed?” 

Steph raised her eyebrows. 

“As I told Renegade, I don’t think I would have cared.” 

Cass nodded. 

“Same.”

“Oh for fucks sake.” 

Dick sounded extremely frustrated, but seemingly calmed down when Damian spoke up. 

“I would feel a slight emptiness. If mother or grandfather died. I don’t think I would have mourned them for long, but I would feel some kind of sadness, I guess.” 

Bruce frowned. 

“But why would you have such a reaction to Wilson’s death? You said yourself that you understand why Renegade did it.” 

Dick huffed out an irritated breath. He paced back and forth for a few seconds, before coming to a stop in a place where he could see everyone from. 

“Why I have such a reaction? Why I spent months mourning Slade? Because, ever since I first ran into him with the Titans, Slade Wison has been the only constant in my life. The only person I could trust to always be there. Bruce almost threw me out of the cave on a few occasions. Jason cares more about his criminal empire than his family. Tim has already proved how easily he can abandon this family. As soon as Bruce disappeared, Tim took off. You didn’t even consider the fact that we could have needed you. That you left all the problems of Gotham on my shoulders. And we all know that Steph would leave with Tim if he ran off again. Babs is incredibly quick to assume the worst about me and just leave. And Cass would go with her without a question. Kate is almost never actually here. Wally and Roy refused to talk to me for almost a year after my ‘death’. Sure, M and Apollo would come if I asked them, but they have their own lives and problems. I can’t drag them into mine. But Slade has always been there. Every time I ran away from the Titan’s Tower, he would drop whatever he did, to drag me back there. Even when I didn’t want to. Every time I had enough of the hero life, he would more or less force me back. And then, when I moved on to Bludhaven, he would sometimes refuse contracts if he knew I was in danger. I could call him in the middle of the night, and he would always pick up. Sure, he was a murderer, he went way too far with the Titans and, as he said himself, he would have done anything to get me to join him. But he was still always there whenever I needed him. He…” 

Dick stopped himself, his eyes widening when he realized what he had said. He looked at Bruce with fear. The man looked back calmly. 

“Will you try attacking Renegade for killing Slade?” 

The young man frowned. The others in the cave, except for Jason, were just as shocked. Considering the bad arguments that Bruce and Dick could get into, they had all expected a violent reaction. Jason, on the other hand, had seen the change in Bruce since he started talking with Renegade. He was much calmer, almost like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He seemed more open-minded. Very slowly, Dick shook his head. 

“No. As I said, I know why he did it.” 

Bruce nodded. 

“Good. Set the device to Renegade’s earth. Dick, Jason. If you need any of your gear, go get it now.” 

While Tim and Babs were setting up the device to the right earth, Dick hurried over to where his suit was. He suited up and went back to where Jason had simply put on his helmet and checked the ammunition in his guns. Bruce, who was already in the Batsuit, nodded at them. 

“Alright. Open the portal. If we’re not back in two hours, contact Renegade and ask him if we got there or not. If not, get in touch with Midnighter and Raven. Open the portal to where you sent me and…” 

“That won’t be needed.” 

Everyone turned to Dick, who still seemed slightly uncomfortable. 

“M has a tracker on me, connected to the computer in his brain. He can track me anywhere in the world, so I’m guessing it works across earhts too. Just have him pin me down, and open a portal to there. He should be able to do that.” 

Kate nodded. 

“Sure.” 

Tim punched in the last few numbers and a blue portal opened. Bruce pulled the cowl on and stepped into it, Dick and Jason following him quickly. 


	2. Bombs

As soon as they stepped out of the portal, both Jason and Dick frowned. They were in the Batcave. It looked different from the one on their earth, but it was still the Batcave. The computer was in the same place as always. But that was the only thing they recognized. One of the walls was filled with a multitude of weapons. Everything from knives and swords, to automatic rifles and a few bo-staffs. Another wall was completely empty. Further in the cave were stone stairs leading down to somewhere. Both boys were confused. There were no stairs down in their Batcave. Dick turned to Jason. 

“I didn’t know that Jason still uses guns, even as Batman. And why did we end up in the Batcave? We calculated the machine to get us to Renegade’s house.” 

Before anyone could answer, they heard a voice from the platform leading to the mansion. 

“Don’t move.” 

All three froze, Bruce’s hand twitching towards his belt. 

“Now turn around. Slowly. And don’t you dare reach for your weapons.” 

Very slowly, all three turned around, and then stopped in shock. Dick Grayson was standing on the platform, pointing a gun at them. He was dressed in black jeans and a black hoodie. His hair was held back in a manbun. He had several scars on his face, one of them running from his chin, across his mouth and left eye, and ending at his hairline. He was glaring at them, pure hate visible in his eyes. 

“How dare you? Who the hell are you?!” 

Bruce hesitated for a few seconds, before reaching up and pulling his cowl back. Seeing that, Dick pulled off his mask and Jason lifted the helmet off. 

“My name is Bruce Wayne. I’m from…” 

“Stop lying! Who the hell are you?!” 

Before they managed to answer, a door opened on the other side of the Batcave and Deathstroke hurried inside, stopping when he saw the three newcomers. Quickly he shook his head and looked up to Dick. 

“Deathwing. Stand down. They are not from our earth.” 

Deathwing hesitated. 

“What?” 

“My machine. The one that you helped me make. It showed a portal opening between our earth and another one. They are not from here.” 

Very slowly, Deathwing lowered his gun and put it in the holster he had on his thigh. He tilted his head. 

“This is really Bruce Wayne?” 

Slade nodded. 

“Yeah. As soon as the machine signalled, I came here. You would…” 

“And what about your mission?” 

Deathwing’s voice was cold. With a smirk, Slade shook his head. 

“You really think so little of me that you believe I wouldn’t finish the mission?” 

The young man shrugged with one shoulder. With a sigh, Slade walked over to the computer and put a hard drive on the table. 

“This is all I could find.” 

Deathwing nodded and started walking down the stairs. 

“Good.” 

The door at the top of the platform opened and Cass stepped through it. She was dressed in a short black dress. Her hair was long to her waist and tied in a loose french braid, a few short strands hanging in front of her face. 

“Dick?” 

Deathwing turned to her, worry appearing on his face. 

“What’s wrong? Is Damian…?” 

She cut him off with a head shake. 

“Asleep. Me dance practice.” 

He frowned, before nodding. 

“Oh yeah, I forgot. Is Billy driving you?” 

She nodded, hurried down to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He gave her a quick hug. 

“Be careful, Cass. Anything happens, you call me. Understood?” 

She smiled at him. 

“You calm. Me fine.” 

He took a deep breath and nodded. 

“Alright. I’ll see you later.” 

She gave him another kiss on the cheek and then ran upstairs and out of the cave again, not once looking at the three newcomers. Deathwing turned to Slade. His voice, which had been nicer when he spoke to Cass, now got cold again. 

“Get them out of here. I have work to do.” 

He sat down in front of the computer and started typing. Acting quickly, Slade stepped closer to Dick. 

“Come with me.” 

The young man looked at him with a frown, before nodding. Slade smiled and pointed to the door he had come in through. Dick grabbed Jason’s elbow and put his other hand on Bruce’s shoulder. 

“Let’s go.” 

Although still shocked, the two went with him. Slade led them out into the backyard of the mansion. As soon as they were there, he stopped and sighed heavily. 

“What are you three doing here?” 

He was addressing Dick and ignoring the other two. Something that both Bruce and Jason noticed, but didn’t comment on. 

“We were trying out travel between earths. We know a guy on another earth. But it seems that we ended up on the wrong one.” 

Slade nodded. 

“Yeah. No shit.” 

Jason tilted his head. 

“What happened to him? And why are you in the cave? Where is Batman?” 

Slade sighed heavily again, a tired look appearing on his face. 

“He’s there.” 

He pointed his hand to somewhere behind them. They turned around and both young men froze in shock. Bruce was shocked too, but hid it better. There, in the backyard, were gravestones. Ten gravestones. With slow steps, they went closer to them. Slade followed them in silence. As they came to a stop in front of the graves, all three felt their eyes widen when they noticed the names on them. 

_ Bruce Wayne - Father, husband, hero - Batman _

_ Timothy Jackson Drake - Son, brother - Red Robin _

_ Jason Peter Todd - Son, brother - Red Hood _

_ Selina Kyle-Wayne - Mother, wife - Catwoman _

_ Katherine “Kate” Kane - Sister, cousin, friend - Batwoman _

_ Barbara Gordon - Sister, daughter, friend - Oracle  _

_ Stephanie Brown - Sister, daughter - Spoiler _

_ Luke Fox - Son, brother - Batwing  _

_ Duke Thomas - Son, brother - Signal  _

_ Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth - Butler, friend, father, grandfather  _

Dick turned to Slade. 

“What the hell happened here?” 

Slade looked at him with something odd appearing in his eyes. 

“Joker planted bombs in the cave. Then he waited until everyone was there. Seconds before he detonated the bombs, he sent a message to the cave. Told them about the bombs. They didn’t have time to react. Dick managed to send out a cry for help to the League, before the first bomb detonated. Then he grabbed Cassandra, who was closest, and rolled on top of her to shield her. Damian, who was furthest away from the bombs, was thrown against a wall. His head hit a rock. He’s still in a coma. No one else survived.” 

Bruce frowned. 

“What about the League?” 

Slade snorted. 

“The League? Jordan was the only one to come. He got here seconds before the last bomb hit and managed to create a shield around Damian to protect him from the falling ceiling. Then he quickly grabbed Damian and Cassandra and flew them to the hospital. He thought that Dick was dead, because of all the scars on his face. He left the two in the hospital and came back, just in time to see Dick wake up. He grabbed him and flew him away as well. Damian ended up in a coma. Dick spent seven hours in surgery. He had several crushed bones, a punctured lung and trauma to his head. I was one of the contacts the hospital could call if anything happened to him, and I got to the hospital shortly after Jordan brought him in. Cassandra woke up two hours later and I had her moved to Damian’s room. When Dick came out of surgery, he was put in a medically induced coma. They wanted to keep Cassandra there overnight, so I left them with Billy and went to the cave. Jordan helped me clean it up and bury everyone in the backyard. I knew Dick wouldn’t want them in a cemetery where someone could destroy the graves. Then I went back to the hospital and waited. Jordan came by from time to time. The others from the League tried to, but left when I threatened to kill them all. Cassandra was discharged after five days, and I moved her and Billy to the mansion. After some bribery and threats, I had Damian moved there as well, putting him under Billy’s care. Then I waited for Dick to wake up. They brought him out of the coma almost a month later. He was discharged a week after that. I took him back to the mansion and told him everything I knew. I don’t think he even gave himself time to grieve. Just got to work immediately. Both him and Cassandra changed their costumes into entirely black and took on new identities. Deathwing and Orphan. Cassandra managed to bounce back a bit. After a few weeks, she signed up for dancing lessons. Helped Billy take care of Damian, cook, clean. Became the lady of the house, you could say. Dick never recovered. He started really hurting criminals. One day, he took it too far and killed one of Penguin’s goons. After that, he never held back again. Got more and more violent, until he got hit over the head. Turns out that he hadn’t been following any of the guidelines his doctor had given him. He ended up in the hospital again. When they discharged him, he was forbidden from any strenuous activities. Dick, of course, ignored them. He decided to still go on missions, until he suddenly fainted in the middle of one. We took him back here and I pretty much guilt tripped him into taking it easy. Told him that if he died, Cassandra and Damian would be left alone. He agreed to take care of himself and, a year later, he was alright. As of now, headaches and occasional dizziness are the only thing left.” 

Bruce lowered his head, while the two boys exchanged shocked looks. Then, Jason shook his head. 

“Joker did all this?” 

He waved his hand at the graves. Slade nodded. 

“And where is that son of a bitch now?” 

The mercenary frowned, before nodding again. 

“Follow me. I’ll show you.” 


	3. Joker

Slade led them back into the cave. Deathwing looked up from where he was working on the computer and frowned. 

“What are they still doing here?” 

Slade sighed. 

“I’m taking him down to the cage.” 

Blue eyes glared at him, before the young man turned back to the computer. 

“Don’t be down there too long. I have another mission for you.” 

“I just got back.” 

With an angry huff, Deathwing stood up and turned to Slade, his hand going to the handle of his gun. 

“May I remind you that you were the one who came up with this arrangement. You were the one who said that you would go on the missions, as long as I took it easy. I agreed, because I knew how you would never question my methods. But if you can’t keep up with my pace, you can take your stuff and go. I don’t need you.” 

Jason and Dick exchanged frowns, while Bruce just looked at the young man with sadness. He had been that way too. Before he adopted Dick. Before he got something worth living for. He worked until he dropped. Nothing else mattered. Slade shook his head and took a step towards Deathwing. 

“We both know that you wouldn’t survive long without me.” 

“Wouldn’t survive?! I’ve survived worse before. I somehow managed to survive every one of Joker’s attacks. I survived YOU!” 

The mercenary shook his head again. 

“You survived me, because I wanted you to survive me. Don’t think that it was something special. And, with your current condition, you wouldn’t last two minutes against me. So stand down and don’t argue.” 

They glared at each other for almost an entire minute, before Deathwing suddenly smirked. 

“Maybe not. But you’ve made it very clear that you don’t want me to get hurt. Even if we fought now, you would hold back. You’ve shown your weakness to me, Slade. And you taught me to ALWAYS use others’ weaknesses against them.” 

Slade hesitated, before nodding slightly. 

“I’ll show them what we have down there and then you can brief me on the mission. They can stay in the mansion while they wait for me to come back.” 

“Yeah. I think we can lock them up somewhere there. Have Billy keep an eye on them.” 

Jason twitched. 

“Like hell. I’m not going to be locked up somewhere just because you have trust issues.” 

Before Deathwing could say anything, Dick spoke up in a quiet voice. 

“Can I see Damian? After Slade shows us whatever it is he wants to show us.” 

Something softened in Deathwing’s eyes and he nodded. 

“Yeah. You can. As to you.” 

He turned to Jason. 

“This is my house. My rules. You don’t like them, I’ll have Slade deal with you.” 

“What? Can’t do it yourself?”

Without warning, Deathwing charged at them, a knife drawn. Before he could get to Jason, a voice was heard from the top of the stairs. 

“Richard!” 

He stopped in mid step and spun around to where an old man was standing. 

“Billy? What’s wrong? How is Damian?” 

“Damian is fine. You, on the other hand, are not. You had a terrible headache in the morning and I will not have you make it worse just because someone insulted you. You want them punished, you have Slade here for that.” 

Deathwing seemed to hesitate, before nodding and hiding the knife again. Billy smiled at him and went down the stairs. 

“I just dropped Cassandra off at her lesson. Her teacher told me about a show being put up by Cassandra’s favorite ballet group next month. I took the liberty to buy tickets for you and her. I’m sure she will appreciate it.” 

Deathwing nodded, his expression softening slightly. 

“Thank you.” 

“I also prepared some food upstairs and I insist that you come and eat.”

Deathwing looked like he wanted to protest, but stopped when Billy cut him off. 

“I’m sure that you’ll be able to work better if you’re not starving. I also have your medicine upstairs.” 

The young man snorted. 

“After all I ever said about drugs, it’s ironic that I can barely function without them anymore.” 

Billy shook his head. 

“This is medicine. Not drugs.” 

Deathwing shrugged. 

“Same thing. Alright. Let’s go. Slade. After you’ve showed them what we have downstairs, take them up to the library and leave them there. Then get to work. I’ve sent some files over to your phone. One of Black Mask’s old warehouses. I think some Joker fanatics have set up an organization there. Get as much information as possible. If they spot you, kill them all.” 

And with that, he turned around and walked upstairs. He went through the door, Billy throwing Slade a worried look, before he followed, closing the door behind them. Slade sighed heavily. 

“That was close.” 

Everyone turned to him with frowns. 

“He isn’t well. Every time he overstrains himself, his head gets worse. He has these blackouts where he is extremely violent towards anyone who isn’t Cass. Then, when he realizes where he is, he can barely remember what he did. Quite frankly, it’s a bit scary.” 

Bruce glanced to the door at the top of the stairs. 

“Did he get it checked out?” 

Slade shook his head. 

“No. The last checkup he had was a while ago. The doctors said that everything was in order and that the headaches were a normal occurrence. When the blackouts started, he refused to see a doctor and only agreed to take the medicine Billy suggested. It helps a bit. The blackouts aren’t as frequent, but he still has days when he says that his brain feels like it’s on fire.” 

He sighed. 

“Alright. Come with me. I think you need to see this to really understand what Dick Grayson has turned into.” 

They followed him down the stone stairs to the part of the cave that wasn’t there in their world. There was a long stone hallway there and, at the end of it, a large pit that looked like it was created by an explosion. There were metal bars over the pit and a light, hanging directly over it. Slade turned the light on and pointed downwards. 

“Take a look.” 

With cautious steps, the three newcomers walked over to the pit. What they saw there made Bruce look disturbed, Dick gasp and cover his mouth and Jason swear. At that, the person down in the pit looked up, his eyes widening when he saw them. His make-up was smeared all over his face, his clothes looked like they hadn’t been washed in months, stained with dirt and blood. Through the holes and rips in the clothes they could see wounds, some old enough to have become thin scars, others newer, a few still bleeding. He was clearly starved, his ribs showing through the skin. His eyes were bloodshot. But what was most terrifying were the scars leading from the corners of his mouth almost all the way to his ears. They were bleeding slightly, puffed up and clearly new. 

“Is that…” 

Dick cut himself off. Slade nodded. 

“Joker. Dick’s favorite plaything.” 

He walked to the edge of the pit and looked down. Seeing him, Joker backed into a corner and curled up. Slade smirked. 

“He’s not here.” 

Very slowly the clown tilted his head. 

“But he is in a bad mood, so you should get a visit tonight.” 

That made the clown shriek and curl up again. Jason looked at Slade with a frown. 

“How is that possible? He never reacted to anything any of us did. Hell, he laughed every time B beat him up.” 

Slade sighed. 

“Months of torture can change anyone. Most would go mad. He was already mad, so it made him sane. And, the more sane he got, the worse it was for him. He tried to talk some sense into Dick. So Dick cut out his tongue. He was thinking about slitting his throat to cut his vocal cords, but he wanted him to be able to scream.” 

He looked at Bruce. 

“This is what happened to Dick Grayson after you died.” 

Bruce was still staring at Joker in silence. Jason shook his head. 

“I don’t know which is worse. This or Renegade.” 

Dick frowned. 

“Ren cared about Damian. And Cass.” 

“So does Deathwing. You know what? Fuck it. I’m going up there to talk to him.” 

He took two steps, before Slade’s hand on his shoulder stopped him. 

“What do you think you’re doing?” 

Jason glared at him. 

“I’m going to talk to him, and I’m not going to baby him like Wintergreen, or let him outsmart me like you do. He has nothing to use against me. And he needs to hear some things. Now get out of my way, before I throw you down there with the clown.” 

Slade raised his eyebrows. 

“You couldn’t beat me.” 

“Are you really sure about that?” 

Very slowly, Slade let go of his shoulder. 

“Fine. But don’t blame me if he shoots or stabs you. Dick, Wayne. You two go to the library and stay there. I’ll ask Billy to go there and keep you company.” 

Jason just grinned at him and quickly left. Dick seemed to think about something very hard, before shaking his head. 

“Can I stay here with you? I could help you find more information about that gang.” 

Slade seemed surprised, but nodded. Finally drawing his eyes away from the Joker, Bruce frowned. 

“Dick? What are you…?” 

“Remember what I said in the cave? Before we got here? I… I need this. Please?” 

Bruce considered him for a few seconds, before nodding. 

“Alright. I’ll wait for you in the library. But be careful. This isn’t our world.” 

Dick smiled at him and the man left, heading up to the mansion. Slade waited until he was gone, and then looked down at Dick. 

“Come on. Let’s talk somewhere we won’t get overheard.” 

He turned off the light and led Dick back to the cave. 

“So. What do you want?” 


End file.
